We should be told why this decision was made.

Hi Andrew,

When you say anything that causes Australian’s to give less is a tragedy. But with the greatest respect this has absolutely nothing to do with you. Mind your own business.

I have no problem with door knocking, telephone calls or rattling donation tins in shopping centers. Mainly because it remains my decision as to who, how much, how often and for what reasons I may or may not contribute my hard earned cash. I give in accordance with my own values and not yours.

The problem comes when some overblown, self opinionated, ideological, vote seeking scammer politician wants to mortgage my children’s and my grandchildren’s economic well being by borrowing even more money from overseas to send overseas or to Australian charities in the finest economic stupidity tradition. Your confected compassion is a pox on our democratic society.

As a declining breed of progressive politicians I wish you well in your political demise.

Good riddance to progressive stupidity.

It is quite simple. Work on the basis that the people running the charity are scamming you and stealing the money.
On principal I just tell collectors no thank you, as I am far too polite to snarl nick off thief! at them.

If Australians wish to give money to charity as individuals, that is one thing. When governments who represent the Australian people give away their electors money to foreigners, that is something else.

As a charitable Australian, I am concerned that Australia has given away $1 billion to prop up the Indonesian currency after their own leaders and his family siphoned off God knows how many billions and stashed them in Swiss bank accounts. I am concerned that we have given Indonesia $500 million to protect their own trees and another $500 million to build schools. And all we have gotten in return is that Indonesia deliberately swamped this country with illegal immigrants who were mainly Muslims because the more Muslims there are in Australia, the better they like it.

We have given Indonesia patrol boats that they never use to prevent tens of thousands of Muslims from barging into this country, and we were even stupid enough to give away class A war machines like the C130 military aircraft, while a few days later during the "violation of borders" incident, an Indonesian Air Force officer threatened that Australia was "in range" of Indonesian attack aircraft and bombers.

I am concerned that Australia gives unviable "countries" like East Timor $300 million a year in aid while all we seem to get in return is a mouthful of lip. The same goes for other dysfunctional "countries" like PNG and The Solomon's who are perpetually broke, even though under Imperial rule they turned a profit.

Lastly, I am concerned that authors like this one just can not see that it is absolutely idiotic for Australia to borrow billions to give it away on charity. One wonders whether behind the smokescreen of piety and altruism, there is not a bit of self interest going on? Like the fact that the directors of these charities fly first class, stay in 5 star hotels, and eat lobster at talkfests in Europe while discussing poverty? Then there are the very high tax free wages bestowed upon those directors who's job it is to give our money away.